Currently, most cellular radiotelephones must be manually provided with a cellular service account before the user can place a call, and this usually occurs after purchase. Establishing the account may include the steps of providing the user's account information, such as credit and billing information, to the cellular system; waiting for the cellular system to store this account information and assign a telephone number (Mobile Identification Number); and having a technician program the radiotelephone with the assigned telephone number. This process may take an hour or longer because the cellular system will typically run credit checks and other verifications prior to establishing an account. The process of establishing the account may also be delayed due to a backlog of new accounts. In addition, the telephone must remain with the technician until the phone is programmed. Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for a cellular radiotelephone system wherein the radiotelephone can be purchased and a cellular service account established remotely.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,297,192, there is disclosed a method and apparatus for remotely programming a mobile data telephone. In this patent, downloading of Number Assignment Module ("NAM") designation parameters to a mobile data telephone set allows service authorization codes and activation to be entered remotely. A cellular mobile user first calls a remote cellular system center to establish a voice communication channel between the mobile data telephone and the center. The modem of the telephone is selectively bridged onto the voice communication channel to achieve data transfer between a source of data located at the remote center and the user's modem.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,301,223, there is disclosed a method and apparatus for use in a mobile telephone rental system. In this patent, credit card information is communicated between the mobile telephone unit and a Voice Response System for customer registration and remote programming of mobile telephone unit features and NAM settings. Data read from the mobile telephone units are transmitted in variable length, encrypted and error protected Packet Data Units.
PCT International Publication No. WO 95/15065 entitled "Apparatus and Method for Remotely Initiating Operation of a Cellular Telephone" discusses an apparatus for activating a cellular telephone within a cellular communications network. A PCMCIA card interacts with a controller to display required programming information and questions. A user of the cellular telephone inputs responses to questions on a display. The user responses are transmitted to a system administrator at a customer activation center via a mobile telephone switching office in the cellular telecommunications network. More specifically described, a personal computer memory card international association (PCMCIA) card is provided to the user who purchases or rents a cellular telephone. The PCMCIA card is preprogrammed with a series of questions. The PCMCIA card, however, may add expense to the cost of this cellular telephone and may also require a corresponding slot port, thereby increasing the complexity of this telephone.
Notwithstanding the above identified patents, there continues to exist a need in the art for improved methods for remotely establishing a cellular service account for a cellular radiotelephone. In particular, there exists a need for methods for remotely establishing a cellular service account for a cellular radiotelephone which can be easily adapted for use in different cellular service areas having different requirements for establishing accounts.